10,460 answers about dogs
From a puppy’s first feeding schedule to a senior dog’s comfort care, dog owners ask it all — this page gathers the dog library of KinsLe Answers in one place. Browse by topic below, from feeding and training to health, grooming, safety and travel. Every answer is original, written by KinsLe, and tied to a real KinsLe feature.
885 answers in Behavior & Training — page 17 of 37
Dachshund puppies are usually not easy to housetrain, because this scent-driven, independent little hound would rather follow his nose than follow your schedule, and his small bladder needs very frequent trips outside. Pick one outdoor spot close to the door, carry him there after every nap, meal, and play burst, and…
A Cocker Spaniel puppy is moderately easy to housetrain, because Cockers are affectionate, eager learners who bond closely and respond beautifully to kind, consistent teaching. The breed's sensitivity is the thing to handle carefully, since a Cocker pup who is scolded can become anxious and may urinate submissively…
A Chihuahua puppy has a reputation for difficult housetraining that is only partly deserved, because the real challenges are a genuinely tiny bladder, a strong dislike of cold and wet weather, and owners who carry the puppy everywhere and miss her signals. A Chihuahua can learn an outdoor routine as well as any breed…
A Cavalier King Charles Spaniel puppy is moderately easy to housetrain, because few breeds are as devoted to their people or as keen to earn gentle praise. The counterweights are a small bladder, a sensitive temperament that can make a puppy anxious about toileting in front of you if accidents have been punished, and…
A Bulldog puppy is one of the slower breeds to housetrain, so set your expectations for a marathon rather than a sprint. Bulldogs combine a stubborn, self-possessed streak with low energy and a love of comfort, and a warm pup settled on a rug may genuinely decide that going outside is not worth the effort. Short,…
A Boxer puppy is moderately easy to housetrain, with a willing, people-loving temperament held back mainly by exuberance and a long, distractible puppyhood. A young Boxer would often rather bounce, wrestle, and greet the world than concentrate on toileting, so outings need a calm, business-first structure before any…
A Boston Terrier puppy is moderately easy to housetrain, because Bostons are intelligent, eager to stay close to their people, and usually keen to earn approval. The breed's smaller size means more frequent breaks are needed at first, and a Boston's short coat and flat face make bitter cold and strong heat genuinely…
A Border Collie puppy is among the easiest of all breeds to housetrain, because few puppies read a routine, or your body language, as quickly as this one does. Most Collie pups grasp the outdoor pattern within days and begin signalling clearly, sometimes inventing a signal such as staring at you or pacing by the door.…
A Bichon Frise puppy is one of the trickier small breeds to housetrain, and owners do better when they expect a longer project from the start. A Bichon has a small bladder, a talent for quietly toileting in an unused room, and a sensitive nature that wilts under scolding, so accidents can become hidden habits before…
A Bernese Mountain Dog puppy is fairly easy to housetrain in spirit, because this gentle breed genuinely wants to please and bonds closely to its people. The practical catch is size and slow maturing, since a large pup produces large accidents and may take a little longer to gain full bladder control than a small,…
A Beagle puppy is moderately difficult to housetrain, because his magnificent nose and cheerful stubbornness pull his attention away from the lesson you are trying to teach. Outdoors, a Beagle would almost always rather follow a scent trail than toilet on cue, and indoors an interesting smell in the carpet can…
A Basenji puppy is usually harder to housetrain than most breeds, not because she is unclean but because she is independent and far less driven to please you than a retriever or a shepherd. Basenjis are naturally fastidious and dislike soiling their sleeping area, which helps with crate training, yet outdoors she may…
Australian Shepherd puppies are on the easier side to housetrain because they are bright, people-focused, and quick to connect an outdoor trip with praise. Their challenge is not stubbornness but energy, since a bored Aussie pup who has been left too long between breaks will simply go indoors and move on to the next…
Your car is a familiar, private den that smells of home and follows routines she knows; a bus or train is the opposite — strange engine vibrations through the floor, braking she cannot predict, crowds, unfamiliar smells, and no escape route she understands. Continuous whining is her reporting sustained stress, not…
That whining is usually frustrated friendliness, not disobedience: he can hear and smell children playing, children are high-value social company, and the fence lets him almost join in while blocking him completely — the classic recipe for barrier frustration. Some dogs add a little anxiety if the play sounds exciting…
His body clock did not move when yours did. Dogs set their internal day by first light, meal times, and household sounds, so after the clocks change his usual waking hour feels unchanged to him, and if anyone has played, fed, or fussed him then, he has learned the waking works. Shift him gradually: move the evening…
In the evenings your dog has learned a perfect exchange rate: one remote, taken at the tired end of the day, buys instant eye contact, conversation, and usually a chase or a treat to get it back. The remote also smells strongly of your hands and sits exactly where your attention already lives. Break the trade by…
She is not confused about which toys are hers — the cat's toys carry the cat's scent, feel forbidden, and have been picked up, chased, and noticed, which makes them far more interesting than her own clean, familiar ones. Carrying them to her bed is collecting, not spite: she is stockpiling the high-value finds where…
Your dog has made a precise calculation: children's plates sit at his head height, move around more, are guarded less consistently and often come with dropped extras, while adults have taught him that their plates are firmly defended and unrewarding to approach. He is not being sneaky about rank; he is going where…
Soft toys are warm, smell strongly of the children she loves and are easy to carry, so collecting them one by one into her bed is a comforting hoarding habit that surrounds her resting place with family scent. The steady, purposeful trips suggest collecting itself is rewarding, and a dog bed piled with cuddly toys is…
That patch is almost certainly a busy scent noticeboard where many dogs leave and update messages, so your dog is reading layers of information about who passed, when and in what state, then often adding a reply of his own. Rain fades the oldest layers but also releases fresh scent from the surface, which is why the…
Scratching at the back door minutes after going out usually means the garden trip itself was never his goal: he went out expecting company, a game or a quick toilet, and now the interesting place is back inside with you. If scratching has reliably made the door open, he has also learned it is an effective doorbell he…
Fox mess is one of the strongest, most complex smells on your walk, and rolling lets your dog coat her neck and shoulders in it, which may help her carry an interesting scent back, mask her own smell or simply revel in something intensely stimulating. The shoulder-drop and wiggle you see before the roll is a reliable…
Many dogs keep the garden as social, play and resting territory and prefer to toilet away from home, helped by the movement of a walk relaxing the bowel and by the strong scent posts other dogs leave along the route. If he learned as a youngster that walks follow toileting, or that garden toileting ended play, the…
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